BOOK 22 Devastation! How Pseudo converts Hinder evangelism and what you can do to stop the rot!

A SAMPLE OF ENDORESMENTS The following are some of the endorsements for Julian’s 900+ page book called Evangelism: Strategies from Heaven In the War for Souls. Some people are daunted by such a big book so Julian made a small book out of each chapter of the 900+ page book. What you are about to read is just one of the chapters of the larger work.

David Cole, YWAM Campaigns Asia/Pacific Board of Regents Chairman University of the Nations.

“This book is one of the most in depth looks at what Evangelism really is (and what it isn’t) that I believe has been written in the last century. I have been so inspired in my own calling through its content and often use it as a text book for teaching and imparting to young leaders in YWAM training courses as well as throughout other parts of the Body of Christ. Thank you Julian not only for such a valuable resource as well as for modeling the outworking of its content in your own life over the past few decades.”

Pastor Mike Smith, Melbourne, Australia

“An incredible book that all pastors should read. I have been a Christian for 28 years and a pastor for many years, and when I picked up this book, I thought, I doubt this will teach me anything new about evangelism. I was so wrong. It has revolutionised my thinking.

This is an incredible book that all pastors should read.”

Grant Buchanan LLB, B.Com, Auckland

“The best book I have ever read.

I am a solicitor (54) and a partner in a law practice.

I unhesitatingly give my endorsement for Julian s book.

Indeed, I would rate it as the best book that I have ever read!”

Grant Buchanan LLB, B.Com, Auckland

Michael Angulo, Pastor and Church Leader

“Truly a work of Ministerial art. I really like this book and every true evangelist will love it also. YOU ARE NOT GOING TO PUT IT DOWN, BUT WILL BE THINKING WHEN YOU ARE GOING TO READ IT AGAIN! A truly very well written book with good retrospective learning ideas. No true evangelist should be without this book. It is worth what it is worth and it will catapult you into great, deliberate PROVEN, ministry approach. Great book and I highly recommend it. Get this one, you won’t be disappointed!”

Julian Batchelor, M.ed (Hons), B.Th, Dip.T’Ching

Devastation!

How Psuedo Conversions Hinder Evangelism And What You Can Do To Stop The Rot! Copyright Julian Batchelor Evangelism Strategies International Press Auckland New Zealand

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Acknowledgements I owe a lot of thanks to a lot of people for the production of this Mini Series: Sheryl Kampenhout, who transferred a mountain of material from Power Point shows into Word documents and who served and encouraged me in such a loving and kind way; to Matthew Old, a faithful friend and fellow evangelist, who has been a Barnabas. He reached out his hands when the hills seemed steepest, loved me in spite of my failures, stimulated me with his sharp mind, and made me laugh when I wanted to cry; to Janice Teo, and her intercessory prayer team who are as vital to the ministry I direct as the heart is to the body; to the team of editors, including Ken Francis and Julie Belding; to all the financial supporters who have given so generously to me over the years. I especially want to thank Paul and Tina Richards, of Club Physical, owners of a gymnasium chain in Auckland, New Zealand, and Derek van Beynen, who have faithfully sponsored my ministry for over a decade. Few people have the privilege of being able to leave secular work to write and produce resources to further the cause of the evangelisation of the world, and to motivate and equip the Church to do the same. You, and all my other financial supporters, have made this possible; to those I live with who have not seen me for years because I have been locked away in my office writing, I give my sincere thanks. Special thanks to Neil Pollock. To Jenny Windeyer, the graphic artist, who designed the cover of the original 800 page book (which we’ve turned into this Mini Series), and to Jenny’s husband Drew for going beyond the call of duty so that Jenny could focus on this project; to faithful Bernie Anderson who has sacrificed and given way beyond what a leader would expect of a dedicated co-worker; to Eleanor Goodall and Sue and George Jeffrey who epitomise love and true friendship; to the team at ESI for keeping all the various aspects of the evangelism ministry moving forwards whilst I directed most of my time to write this Mini Book Series; for Dr Martyn Bowis who did all the programming for the electronic version of the gospel called “Proclaim it!”; for Henoch Kloosterboeror for producing all the brilliant

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drawings; Dr David Stewart, retired Principal of the Bible College of New Zealand for nearly two decades of encouragement and mentoring; Denise James and Anne Bartley, staff at the Bible College of New Zealand for helping with research; all those who have helped proof read the manuscript and given comment, particularly Dr Marie Sewell, Gill Donald, Gill Lukey, Donna Hansen, Ainslie Vines, Ann Hunter, and Miriam and Ted Martin; to the academic staff of the Bible College of New Zealand for giving me a grounding in theology; for all those who have given financially and sacrificially to pay for specific aspects of the publishing of this Mini Book Series; for my friend Ray Comfort, for his inspiration and encouragement.

There are few evangelists today who have journeyed on the road of trial and tribulation to achieve breakthrough as Ray Comfort. For John Stott, the academic evangelist for his coaching and input via his many books.

For all the people who we have trained in evangelism around the world who are out there doing it – you are the heroes in the battle for souls; for the many hundreds of pastors, leaders, and lay Christians around the globe who have contributed to my life as a Christian, and to this Mini Book Series; and finally, I thank Jesus Christ, whose amazing grace and love has inspired and kept me. All the revelations in this Mini Book Library about evangelism and the gospel were given by Him – to Him be all the glory.

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How To Read The Mini Books In This Library This Mini Book is one of a Library of 27 Mini Books. The Library is a detailed critique of the battle between light and darkness which is relentlessly raging all over the earth for the souls of men and women.

The insights and revelations in each Mini Book are hierarchical i.e.

Mini Book Two builds upon Mini Book One, Mini Book Three upon Mini Books One and Two, and so on. Hence, the ideal is to try and read all the Mini Books in the library in sequence. If you skip Mini Books, or even parts of Mini Books, you might miss something vital, and open yourself to misunderstanding or even defeat.

Having said this, after you have read Mini Books One to Seven, which are the foundational books in the Library, each Mini Book is designed to stand alone. So, read Books One to Seven first. This is essential.

With respect to evangelism, if you follow the advice I am giving here in the pages of each Mini Book, you’ll position yourself perfectly to be used by the Holy Spirit to glorify Jesus in ways you’d not imagined possible. How so? Read the 27 Mini Books in the library and find out.

Along with Mini Books 1-7, I suggest you also purchase Mini Book 27, which is the “Evangelism Fitness Test.” This is a diagnostic survey which will tell you the extent to which you have been unwittingly influenced by the devil with respect to evangelism. Sit this test before you read anything. Then do the same test again after you have read all the Mini Books to check to see if all his devices have been thoroughly purged from your mind!

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Devastation!

How Psuedo Conversions Hinder Evangelism And What You Can Do To Stop The Rot!

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piritual giant A.W. Tozer believed that millions of people have had some kind of spiritual experience, even accepting Jesus, but have not actually been saved.1 Similarly, George Barna claims that half of all adults who attend Protestant churches on a typical Sunday morning are not Christians.2 Pseudo converts – people who attend church regularly but who are not truly saved – are contributing to the decline of evangelism in the West. In this Mini Book I explain why this is so.

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hy some people come to church…

People may join a church to improve or change their lifestyle, or for a new set of friends. They may want to cure loneliness or find a new family. They may want to be accepted, healed from hurts or addictions, and so on. It’s quite legitimate to

1 Cited in Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort. The Way Of The Master. How To Share Your Faith Simply, Effectively, Biblically… The Way Jesus Did. Tyndale Books, 2003, p.66 2 George Barna. Evangelism That Works. Regal Books, 1995, p.38

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join a church (small “c”) for these reasons,3 because often people “connect” before they convert. One of our aims ought to be to bring non-Christians to church to meet other Christians, so that they can observe and sense what God is doing as He works powerfully through His people.

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evice 82. To lull leaders into thinking the majority of people in church are already genuine Christians.

The trouble is, according to Barna and Tozer at least, many are connecting to the small “c” church, but not enough are converting to the capital “C” Church which is the body of Christ.

These pseudo converts who connect but don’t convert have three standout characteristics: they come not to serve but to be served; they take but don’t give; “self” still rules, not Jesus. Their hearts have never been changed. Jesus is still on the periphery, rather than at the centre of their lives.

Since they have not been born again, they are not indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Thus their minds are not set on Jesus, His kingdom or His purposes. Given that genuine spiritual fruitfulness is inspired and empowered by the Holy Spirit, how can we expect pseudo converts to enter into God’s ultimate cause – the evangelisation of the earth? Such work is hard, gruelling and humbling (John 4:38).4 It requires selfless giving for His glory.

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ow do pseudo converts hinder evangelism…?

First, they discourage the evangelists. One aspect of the mandate of the Ephesians 4:11-12 evangelist is “to equip the saints for the work of ministry,” but pseudo converts show no interest

3 After all, Jesus did say. “Come to Me all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

4 The Greek word here in John 4:38 for “labour” is kenokopeo which means “to grow weary, tired, exhausted with toil or burdens or grief.” This speaks of what it is going to cost every true disciple who desires to evangelise the world.

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in being trained for evangelism.5 Secondly, they have a negative influence on genuine Christians. Here’s how: • New converts, who are genuinely saved, join a church.

• They have a passion for evangelism.

• They don’t realise that not everyone in the church they join is genuinely Christian.

• They soon observe that many people in the church they join don’t share their passion for evangelism.

• The enthusiasm of the new converts for evangelism continues for a while because their fresh experience of salvation is just so fantastic that they can’t keep quiet about it!

• But over time, observing the sea of non-evangelising church goers all around them, even they are worn down.

• It’s not long before they start doubting the universal command of Jesus to evangelise the earth.

• Next, they stop evangelising altogether.

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etting the priceless buzz…

The overall effect of the pseudo converts on evangelism is that they have a significant ‘dulling down’ influence on the entire evangelistic zeal of a local church. Their negative influence is more insidious than you might think. They are evangelism fire exstinguishers!

In contrast, the following describes a local church where evangelism is thriving.

Imagine arriving at church on Sunday when all the people have been busy evangelising all week. Many have brought non-Christians along, and they are truly alive because they have seen and felt God at work through them as they have evangelised.

They are exchanging stories of evangelism encounters, and those 5 T his is not saying that anyone who shows no interest in being trained for evangelism is not genuinely saved. Genuine Christians who show no interest in being equipped for evangelism can do so for a variety of reasons – all the reasons uncovered in this book. For example, they might have genuinely thought they were already doing it; or they might sincerely have thought that it was someone else’s responsibility i.e. the person with ‘the gift.’ But here’s the thing - and this is a crucial distinction - genuine believers will want to learn how to evangelise when they understand the truths of this book whereas the pseudo will not.

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who have experienced disappointment are being encouraged. All the prayer people in the church are excited because they are seeing results.

The pastor is on fire because the people arrive excited and expectant.

No ‘warm up’ period (i.e. singing songs) is necessary– they come red hot.

The worship rises to a new level because the people are overflowing with praise and worship from their hearts.

The overall ‘buzz’ is priceless. The offerings are generous because nothing causes people to buy into a vision of a local church more than an evangelism strategy that involves them directly and is bearing fruit. These offerings go to fund further evangelism training and resources and vital ‘ploughing’ initiatives. How long do you think pseudo converts would survive in a local church like this?

But there is a third way pseudo converts hinder evangelism.

Occasionally they slip into church leadership, where they have great influence. Here they do the most damage. Unwittingly they begin to teach their non-evangelising lifestyle to the flock.6 What a perfect result for the enemy.

There are several positive steps we can take to decrease the number of psuedo converts in the Church.

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liminate superficial altar calls…

We can reduce the number of psuedo converts if we eliminate what I call ‘superficial altar calls.’ Let me explain.

When I run seminars on evangelism, I ask those attending to draw a line down the middle of a piece of paper. On one side, as a heading, 6 This is not saying that everyone who feels fearful about evangelism or perceives it as threatening and demanding is a pseudo convert. Genuine Christians can have these perceptions and feel these fears. The difference is that true Christians feel deeply the need to proclaim the gospel and they want others to feel the same way. If they knew how to overcome their fears and inadequacies towards evangelism, they would.

Pseudo converts, however, not having the mind of Christ, nor being indwelt by the Holy Spirit, don’t have a genuine heart for any of this.

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I ask them to write Jesus As Saviour. Under this I ask them to list all the benefits of becoming a Christian. Their lists include things such as love, joy, eternal life, the gift of the Holy Spirit, hope, forgiveness, healing, miracles, blessing, and so on. Then I ask them to imagine a ‘saviour-only’ altar call at an evangelistic meeting. The evangelist is at the front and there is a sense of God’s presence. The people are expectant, as the preacher calls for every head to be bowed and every eye closed. He exhorts the Christians to pray.

“I know there are people here that once knew the Lord,” he says, “but you have drifted away. God is calling you back. And there are people that have never made a decision for Jesus. God is calling you. If you are a person who has known the Lord and you want to come back or you want to make a decision for the first time, slip up your hand right now. If you want eternal life, forgiveness, hope and joy [or some of the other benefits listed above], then slip your hand up right now.

Praise God, I see that hand! And that one! And that one! God is really moving here tonight! Come on saints, keep praying.”

After several minutes, the altar call comes to a close.

Then: “I want everyone to stand please. Praise God. We’ve had about 20 people put up their hands tonight. Let’s give the Lord a clap offering to thank Him for what He has done! Now, just as the musicians continue to play, I don’t want to embarrass anyone but I want those 20 people to come out to the front. Okay, I want you to say this prayer after me. And let’s all say it together, church.

“Dear Jesus, I am sorry for what I have done. I want You to forgive me. Please come into my heart right now and bring your peace and joy. I want to be a Christian. Thank you, Jesus. Amen.”

Everybody claps enthusiastically. “Hasn’t this been wonderful?” continues the evangelist. “Now I want all those new Christians to slip out the back and we’ll give you a little follow-up pack. Praise the Lord!”

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What’s missing in this altar call? There is no mention of the cost of being a disciple or of the need to make Jesus Lord.

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ow to tell who is genuinely saved on an altar call…

Please don’t misinterpret what I am saying here. I don’t mean to mock or criticise but this is important. As an evangelist I have given many altar calls like the one I have just described.

I don’t do altar calls like that anymore, because now I know better.

If you are an evangelist or pastor, and you have been giving altar calls like the one I described above, my earnest desire with the discussion in this Mini Book is to increase the effectiveness and fruitfulness of your ministry.

Let me ask you a question.

Those 20 people all said the same prayer, but which ones were converted? Actually, we don’t know. A little prayer does not save someone. It could, but it depends on what is going on in the heart and we can’t see in there.

There are only two ways of knowing whether someone is converted.

The first is to look at the pattern of their life post-conversion.

A transformed life is evidence that the prayer prayed at that altar call was genuine. For example, Acts 26:20 says “....I preached that they should repent and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds.”

The second way is to show people a video of the gospel message which you can see at www.biblein11.com and then ask questions about it. Good questions asked with grace, gentleness and love help us know whether those on the altar call know what they are doing or not.

If after watching the video some of the altar call respondents then said they were not ready to become Christians, I would affirm their honesty and then commit to journey with them to bring them to that 12

point. Bringing them to the point of conversion might take days, weeks, months or even years.

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hat is genuine faith...?

Some Christians might object to the idea of questioning people at an altar call, or the ‘inquiry room,’ as Spurgeon called it.

“This is far too clinical,” they might say. “Becoming a Christian is not mentally assenting to a whole lot of facts. It’s a matter of faith in the heart about Jesus!” What are we to make of this? Is becoming a Christian a head and heart issue, or a heart issue only?

The This We Believe signatories7 made the following affirmation: “We affirm that faith includes mental assent to the content of the gospel, acknowledgement of our own sin and need, and personal trust and reliance upon Christ and His work. We deny that saving faith includes only mental acceptance of the gospel, and that justification is secured by a mere outward profession of faith. We further deny that any element of saving faith is a meritorious work or earns salvation for us.”8 Summary: becoming a Christian ought to be a heart and a head issue.

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ow to improve the retention rate of those who respond at altar calls…

I have found that since I have been following the procedure I have outlined here with those who respond to the altar call, not telling them they are Christians just because they were ready to say a quick prayer at the altar, the fall-off rate following altar calls has dramatically decreased.

At one altar call I did recently, 20 people responded initially, but, after watching the video and discussion, only six were ready to follow through.

7 A landmark conference was held in 2000, and attended by 229 top Christian leaders, authors, and theologians. They produced a series of affirmations and denials regarding the gospel and evangelism. A full list of signatories is detailed in appendix five.

8 R avi Zacharias et al. This We Believe. The Good News Of Jesus Christ For The World. Zondervan Publishing House, 2000, p.120

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The other fourteen were quite happy to journey with the pastor and church leaders so that one day they too could come to the place where they were ready to commit sincerely to Christ. But here’s the thing: had I told those fourteen people they were Christians, before they were ready, it is likely I would simply have inoculated them against genuine faith. I would have effectively created more pseudo converts.

On the subject of ascribing salvation to anyone who puts their hand up at an altar call and announcing they are a Christian, Spurgeon wrote: “I am weary of this public bragging, this counting of unhatched chickens, this exhibition of doubtful spoils. Lay aside such numbering of the people, such idle pretence of certifying in half a minute that which will need the testing of a lifetime.”9

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ow to give new Christians the best possible start…

Those who ‘convert’ to Christianity knowing the benefits but not the cost of discipleship, have never heard the full gospel. As such, they are prime candidates for the ranks of the pseudo converts.

Too many people have ‘come to Christ’ (falsely) through this kind of altar call.

Please don’t misunderstand me.

As I have said, I’m not against altar calls. I continue to use them when preaching and encourage others to use them. We have all witnessed how powerfully God has used the altar call.

I use the follow-up booklet called ‘How To Be Sure Of Going To Heaven When We Die’ 10 which has been designed for this very situation.

Christianity Explained and Alpha are also excellent courses for prospective Christians. Even if we think they are ready to become Christians at the altar, and some undoubtedly will be, we 9 Charles H. Spurgeon. The Soul Winner. Grand Rapids, Zondervan, 1948, P.140 10 To purchase, see our web site www.esisite.com or emailing julianbatchelor@xtra.co.nz

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ought to err on the side of caution, giving them time to process the implications of their decision and count the cost.

Some may protest, “What happens if they die between the altar call and the time they finally make a decision?” It doesn’t matter.11 God sees the heart. If they really were converted at that altar call, God knew it and they would certainly go to heaven. The thief on the cross didn’t ‘pray a prayer’ but Jesus saved him (Luke 23:3243).

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t is okay to “connect” before “converting”…

Sometimes leaders will preach a powerful sermon and give an altar call for salvation at the end, but the gospel has not been communicated. What are we to make of this?

First, it’s OK to have an altar call but don’t call it an altar call for salvation. Why? Because the gospel has not been preached. So what are people putting their hand up for? They are feeling something inside. Their emotions have been aroused. It might well be the saving work of the Holy Spirit, but it might not.

Don’t forget, feelings like this can be aroused at the opera, at a great sporting event, at a music concert, a play, a movie, or whatever. So what do we do with these ‘feelings’ which people are experiencing in a church service? We put the feeling to the test (1 Thessalonians 5:21). It would be better to say something like, “If God has spoken to you through this message, and you want someone to pray with you, please slip up your hand and someone will come to you.”

Those who do the praying need to ask the people why they raised their hand and pray accordingly. Some may have come to commit their lives to Jesus, and some may not.

Now here is the point - whatever they come up for, and before anyone tells anyone they are a Christian, ask them if you could 11 I don’t mean it doesn’t matter that they died! I mean that it doesn’t matter that they didn’t ‘say the prayer’ at

the altar. The thief on the cross was another who was saved without saying ‘the prayer’.

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show them the video presentation12 which explains the gospel. If they agree, show them the video. When they hear and understand the gospel, this is CONCEPTION. If they want to become a Christian after watching it, affirm their desire, but ask them to first take home the follow up booklet (FUB) “How To Be Sure Of Going To Heaven When We Die.”13 Give them a day or so to read and process it, or however long they want so they understand what they are doing and why they are doing it. During this time, be there for them to answer any questions they have, and be praying for them. This is GESTATION. Later in this Mini Book we’ll learn that biblically, repentance is an issue of the head, not just of the heart. This is why gestation is so critical. Modern evangelism must return to engaging the mind, not just the emotions.

When they are ready, and you discern in your spirit they are ready, lead them to Christ. This is the NEW BIRTH. Immediately after the new birth comes DISCIPLESHIP. On the next page, this four step process is explained in a flow diagram. Notice that the person who hears the gospel in the church service hears it again via the gospel message video which they will view in a side room after the service with others who responded to the altar call. Hearing the gospel presented a different way the second time will help them understand the first hearing. As I have said many times before, understanding is critical.

If they can’t for some reason watch the video after the initial prayer at the altar, befriend them, keep in contact, give them a FUB and involve them in other aspects of church life. Why not pay them a visit at home to answer any questions they might have, and further develop the relationship?

We ought to resist rushing people into a decision. It is better to slow the process down a little, journey with them, and allow the 12 Which you can see at www.biblein11.com 13 To read this document, please visit www.esisite.com

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FROM ALTAR CALL TO DISCIPLESHIP How to eliminate the creation of pseudo Christians at altar calls.

The ďŹ rst time someone hears and understands the gospel clearly, the "seed" of the gospel is planted. This is conception. Then the Holy Spirit "grows" the seed.

This is gestation.

Eventually, the Holy Spirit brings the person to the point of conversion.

When they respond, this is the new birth.

Then they learn how to obey Jesus in all things. This is discipleship.

All four steps are critical.

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A person attends a Christian meeting e.g. a Sunday church service

They hear a good message but "the gospel" as described in Chapter 3 of this book is not clearly proclaimed Stay in contact, build relationship. Give them the follow up booklet (FUB) "How To Be Sure Of Going To Heaven When We Die." At the back of this booklet is the web address for the gospel message video (GMV) www.biblein11.com.

Encourage them to watch the GMV and read the FUB in their own time.

Does not accept the invitation e.g they have to rush away somewhere after church.

GESTATION

3 NEW BIRTH

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DISCIPLESHIP

Julian Batchelor

They respond to the altar call e.g put their hand up or come to the front A mature Christian counsellor (MCC) enters into discussion with them to discover the reason they responded i.e. how did the Holy Spirit speak to this person in the service ? Why did they respond?

No matter what is discovered, they are invited to view the gospel message video (GMV) after the service in a side room with others who responded

They accept the invitation i.e. they watch and understand the GMV

CONCEPTION

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They hear the gospel clearly proclaimed

After the video, discuss and answer questions. Don't lead them to Christ, even if they are keen. Give them the Follow up booklet "How to be sure of going to heaven when we die." Allow them a few days or however long they want to read and process what they read.

Ready? Yes. Lead them to Christ when MCC discerns they are ready, and they feel they are ready.

Ready? No. Journey with them to give them what they need to keep moving forwards.

If they have seen the GMV and read the FUB before, and are ready, and MCC discerns they are ready, lead them to Christ

Immediately assimilate new Christians into small groups and begin discipleship. The ďŹ rst step in discipleship is to teach them how to evangelise.

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Holy Spirit to work deeply in them to bring them to the point of genuine conversion.

We want to see them develop a lasting faith. All churches ought to regularly proclaim the gospel on Sundays, so that those in a church who have ‘connected but not converted’ have multiple opportunities to cross the line. This approach to ‘slowing things down a bit’ would help reduce the number of pseudo converts in our congregations.

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ow one pastor is making a big difference…

In Sydney, Australia, I spoke at the Petersham Assembly of God church which is pastored by Barry Saar. The eleven-minute Gospel Message! presentation seemed to be the answer to a concern he had held for quite a while.

He too had been troubled by the high rate of pseudo conversions in our Western churches, and the low retention rate from altar calls.

As Barry sees it, the Great Commission, as recorded in Matthew 28:18-20, speaks of our going into all the world and making ‘waterbaptised’ disciples.

Not being satisfied with merely getting spontaneous decisions, Barry determined to adjust the way his church was doing things. The first thing he realised was that the Petersham AOG needed to present the whole gospel, which included the truth about sin, hell and eternal punishment, and not just the good bits we like to hear.

This brought an immediate change to their Sunday service.

He and his other leaders decided that if they had not presented a clear, full presentation of the gospel in their service, then they would not have a salvation altar call.

He reasoned that we cannot make a ‘complete’ convert when we only present a ‘portion’ of the gospel.

This is where the www.biblein11.com video presented a possible solution. Pastor Barry now concludes each service with an invitation 18

for any person wishing to know more about becoming a Christian to watch this video in another room after the service.

This is a dream come true for Barry, and he would encourage you to do the same. Exactly how does it work?

After every service, the senior pastor, along with other leaders, invite visitors and anyone new to the church to meet with them for a coffee and finger food.

The meeting room is immediately off the main auditorium. The staff who attend these meetings have been trained for this event: interpersonal skills, how to make people feel welcome, learning to ask the right questions, etc.

The room where they meet is especially equipped: stylish, warm, modern, clean and very inviting. A data projector and laptop are there, ready to present the whole gospel.

After welcoming people, and chatting with them, the pastor says something like “Well, thank you for coming to church today, we have really appreciated that you took time out of your day to visit us.

Before you go, we would like to show you a very engaging 11 minute video which explains what we believe here at Petersham AOG. This presentation is a summary of this amazing book (holding up a Bible), so I hope you enjoy this.”

At the end of the presentation, the pastor invites questions, and a small pack of follow up material is given, including details of all the ministries of the church. Yes, we would expect some people to respond for salvation on the spot. All the new people who attend this meeting would be followed up during the coming week with a phone call, and where possible, a home visit.”

As Barry has already explained, he has had a rough version of this dream operating at his church for some time, and it’s working. Why don’t you follow Barry’s excellent example?

What are the effects of the way Barry is dealing with visitors to his church? Two are most noticeable: 19

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n increase in the retention rate

The retention rate of people making a decision for salvation has risen. This is because he and his team have encouraged people to think the issues through carefully before committing. At Barry’s church, people who make the decision stand the test of time.

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n increase in the percentage of people being baptised

When I was last speaking to Barry I asked him how things were progressing.

He had great joy in telling me that the number of people being baptised was now almost the same as the numbers making a decision.

Barry said that in 2004, before making the changes, the church baptised in water 51 percent of the people who had made a decision for salvation.

About the middle of 2005, when they made the changes, the percentage rose to 82 percent.

Now, in 2006, 98 percent of people who made a decision for salvation were also water baptised. He also told me that as a result his church numbers had been increasing these past years after a long plateau.

What can we conclude?

First, if you want people to ‘stick’ when they respond for salvation, make sure they do so in response to hearing the whole gospel.

Secondly, don’t rush the process on the road to the point of a decision. Journey with prospective Christians and walk through their issues and questions.

Thirdly, as Barry has done so successfully, make an opportunity at the end of each service for people to hear the whole gospel in a side room.

Knowing this is going to happen will encourage the people in your church to bring non-Christians along. They will reason, “I really want my friends to hear the gospel. Who better to explain it to them than my awesome pastor? I am going to try and get them to church.”

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ow chemotherapy and the gospel are alike…

Pastor Barry gives the following analogy to describe what he is trying to do at Petersham Assembly of God. “I want to compare proclaiming the whole gospel with a dose of chemotherapy.

A doctor needs to be honest about the seriousness of the disease that is bringing death to his patient, but when the patient realises there is the chance of a cure through chemotherapy, they usually agree to the treatment. Chemotherapy is good news when you realise you are dying. When the negative side effects begin – hair falling out, loss of appetite, pain, vomiting etc – they endure because they have been told the whole truth about what to expect and what will happen if they refuse the treatment.

The gospel is similar. It is Good News about how to know Jesus in this life, and how to escape eternal punishment in the next. The gospel also has difficult side effects, such as the persecution, trials and suffering promised for followers of Jesus. However, and here is the main point, Jesus Christ, through the whole gospel, will save you. This is good news. Many churches have presented only the positives of the gospel message and many ‘pseudo converts’ abandon their ‘faith’ when the promised negative side-effects begin to emerge. If the first ‘consultation’ was honest and presented the whole picture, then we would retain more of our conversions because the whole gospel is good news.”14

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hat it means to proclaim the whole gospel…

If we are to be true to the full gospel, prospective Christians must hear and understand that Jesus is Lord, and not just Saviour. What does it mean to make Jesus “Lord” at the point of conversion? Consider the following diagram: Jesus as Saviour

Jesus as Lord

14 Barry invites other pastors and leaders to email him to discuss what is happening at Petersham: barry.saar@petershamaog.org.au

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he benefits of being T a Christian Love

The responsibilities of being a Christian Serving

Joy

Giving

Peace

Loving

The gift of the Holy Spirit

Suffering

Eternal life

Forgiving

Forgiveness

Evangelising

Destiny

Sacrificing

Hope etc

Caring etc

I ask people in my seminars on evangelism to write the words Jesus as Lord on the other side of the page. Under this they put a sub-heading, Responsibilities. Under this, I ask them to make a list of some of the responsibilities of being a Christian. They start their list with, “We are commanded to…”

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hat God has joined, let no man separate…

In calling people to Jesus, we must not separate the responsibilities from the benefits. At an altar call we do not have the liberty to hide the cost of following Jesus. Jesus is not just Saviour – He is also Lord. By ‘Lord’ I don’t mean given mental assent to the idea that he is the sovereign ruler of the universe. Rather, I mean that we personally submit outselves to him as our Lord and Master. We are His slaves.

Unless someone is willing to enter into the responsibilities of being a Christian, they will not experience the benefits. Pseudo converts don’t make Jesus ‘Lord’ and therefore they have never truly repented. Repentance has to do with turning away from sin and turning towards God. It has to do with adopting a whole new set of attitudes towards life, sin, God, ourselves, the Bible and Church, to name just a few. If we thoroughly understood this word and taught it as a vital part of the full gospel, we would go a long way to reducing the number of pseudo converts.

As Dr Derek Prince wrote, “The whole record of the New 22

Testament is absolutely unanimous on this point … without true repentance there can never be true faith.”15

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ow to bless new Christians…

When someone asks to become a Christian, they have a heart attitude which says, “I surrender the control of my life to Jesus. I willingly give Him control of my marriage, money, housing, food, clothing, comfort, career, and friends, etc. No matter what comes my way from now on, I will serve and obey Him with all my heart.”

We are doing prospective Christians a disservice if we don’t point out the cost of discipleship. It is a spiritual law that there must be death before there can be a resurrection. Therefore, if we want new Christians to enter a life of fruitfulness and blessing, the entry point into Christianity is important.

Jesus was clear on this: “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies it remains alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24). “Those who do not take up their cross [a symbol of death] and follow Me, are not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:38).

Paul reiterates his master’s teaching by saying, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20).

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isten to the experts…

Andrew Murray, the renowned Scottish missionary to South Africa, said, “Let us beware that no wrong-sided or onesided view of what salvation by faith means, lead us astray. There are some who think that salvation by faith is all that’s necessary, and obedience is not so essential. This is a terrible mistake. In our justification there is indeed no thought of obedience in the past.

God justifies the ungodly. But repentance is a return to obedience.

15 Dr Derek Prince. Repent And Believe. Derek Prince Publications, Florida, p.13

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And He has no salvation but for them that obey Him.”16 “It is altogether doubtful,” said A.W. Tozer, “whether any man can be saved who comes to Christ for His help but with no intention to obey Him … the notion that we are permitted to disobey is a modern day heresy.”17 Elsewhere he stated, “In every Christian’s heart there is a cross and a throne, and the Christian is on the throne till he puts himself on the cross; if he refuses the cross, he remains on the throne.”18 In fact Tozer had concerns with the whole “accept Christ” approach.

“It shows Christ applying to us rather than us to Him,” he says.

“It makes Him stand hat-in-hand awaiting our verdict on Him instead of our kneeling with troubled hearts awaiting His verdict on us. It may even permit us to accept Christ by impulse of mind or emotions, painlessly, at no loss to our ego and no inconvenience to our usual way of life.”19 We are reminded in 2 Corinthians 5:15 that “He died for all, that those who live should not live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again.”

Commenting on this verse, missionary statesman and author J.O. Sanders wrote, “Life is now viewed in two dimensions – ‘hitherto,’ and ‘henceforth.’ ‘Hitherto,’ self has been the central point of reference. ‘Henceforth’, time, talents, friends, possessions, recreations are all under His control. Contrary to expectation, such an embracing of the cross of Christ, such a complete surrender to Him as Lord, brings liberty that can be experienced in no other way.”20 16 Andrew Murray. The Holiest Of All. Lowe and Brydone Print. London, 1962, p.193 17 A.W. Tozer. The Root Of The Righteous. OM Publishing, Carlisle, 1995, p.83 18 ibid, p.64 19 ibid, p.101 20 J.O Sanders. Paul The Leader. A Vision Of Leadership Today. Kingsway Publications, 1984, p.78

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Watchman Nee said no one could be a true servant of God without knowing the principle of death and the principle of resurrection.21 Steve Hill, Evangelist and Pastor at Brownsville Assembly of God in Pensacola, Florida, asks, “What kind of ‘plan of salvation’ do we present if all we do is apologetically suggest to our hearers that they would be doing Jesus a favour by accepting Him into their hearts? What kind of gospel do we preach when all we tell our listeners is: ‘Just confess Jesus as Saviour and heaven is your home.’ ‘Just pray the prayer and it’s a done deal.’ ‘Just come to the altar. It will only take a few minutes?’”22 Dr John Stott put it soberingly: “If the cross is not central in our thinking, it is safe to say that our faith, whatever it be, is not the Christian faith, and our creed is not the Apostles’ Creed.”23 If we keep proclaiming a gospel stripped of repentance, and Lordship, we will only create more pseudo converts, which in turn will tighten the handbrake on evangelism in the West.

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hat is true repentance anyway…?

Biblical repentance has three aspects: a target, a direction and an effect.

Let me explain.

THE TARGET of repentance is behaviour and attitudes. At the point of conversion, the non-Christian is agreeing to change his or her attitude. This will in turn lead to a change of behaviour. The Old Testament word for “repent,” when concerned with behaviour, is the word shuv. This word stresses the importance of a conscious moral separation from sin and the need to forsake sin and enter into fellowship with God (e.g. 2 Chronicles 7:14).

In the New Testament the term for repentance, metanoeo, 21 Watchman Nee. The Normal Christian Life. Christian Literature Crusade. Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, 1970, p.165 22 Steve Hill. Personal Revival. God’s Way Of Setting Our Hearts On Fire. Dayspring Publishing, 1999, p.122 23 Cited in David Watson. I Believe In Evangelism. Hodder and Stoughton, 1976, p.71

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focuses on attitudes. It literally means “to think differently about something” or “to have a change of mind.”24 THE DIRECTION of repentance is away from evil and self, towards God. THE EFFECT of repentance is a stirring of the emotions.

In the Old Testament, another word used for repent is nacham.25 This meant to “pant, sigh or groan” and came to mean “lament” or “grieve.” The New Testament also uses a term for repentance which focuses on the emotions. It is the word metamelomai which means “to have a feeling of care, concern, or regret.”26 Theologian Millard Erickson summarises the teaching of both Testaments on the effect of true repentance. “Repentance is godly sorrow for one’s sin, together with a resolution to turn from it. There are other forms of regret over one’s wrongdoings which are based upon different motivations. One motivation may be little more than selfishness. If we have sinned and the consequences are unpleasant, we may well regret what we have done. But that is not true repentance. That is mere penitence. Real repentance is sorrow for one’s sin because of the wrong done to God and the hurt inflicted upon Him. This sorrow is accompanied by a genuine desire to abandon that sin. In the case of true repentance, there is regret over the sin even if the sinner has not suffered any unfortunate personal effects because of it.”27

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ow to help new Christians receive the benefits…

Making Jesus Lord, therefore, is both a decision and a

24 Millard J. Erickson. Christian Theology. Baker Book House, 1985, pp.937-938 25 For example Genesis 6:6; Exodus 32:14 26 For example Matthew 21:29; Matthew 27:3 27 Millard J. Erickson. Christian Theology. Baker Book House, 1985, pp.937-938

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process.28 So when people respond to an altar call and cry out, “I want to be a Christian,” we ought to guide them into a decisive repentance experience, or they will not receive the benefits of becoming a Christian.

If we don’t ensure this happens at the point of salvation, we disregard the clear teaching of Scripture. Then, after they have made their decision to become a Christian, the challenge for them (and for us that have been Christians for a while) is to make Jesus Lord moment by moment throughout life (continual repentance).

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restling with genuine repentance is not always easy…

To be sure, everyone who is genuinely saved is the recipient of a miracle. It’s the miracle of regeneration.

However, the conversion experience of some is visibly noticeable and dramatic. Because of a powerful work of the Holy Spirit, some people can be instantly and thoroughly set free from problems and habits. For example, one man went into the waters of baptism with tattoos, and came up from the waters without them.

Another was a chain smoker, and after the prayer of salvation, never smoked again.

One lady told me she was a rabid swearer before she was saved.

After the prayer of salvation, she stopped swearing instantly and permanently.

With others, though they are genuinely saved, the outward visible change may not be quite so dramatic, measurable, or decisive.

Sometimes it is hard to tell whether they have repented i.e. there are no tears of remorse, and no emotional outpouring.

28 Acts 26:18, 19; 1 Corinthians 15:1-5. The Greek word for repent is metanoeo. In Acts 2:38, Revelation 2:5, 2:16, 3:3 and 3:19 the word is used in the aorist tense and refers to repentance as a specific act. In Acts 2:38 this is at the point of conversion. This is the ‘decision’ of repentance. But the word “repent” is also used in the present tense and means “to keep on repenting”, e.g. Matthew 3:2, Mark 1:15. In these verses, repentance is both a decision and a process. In other words, repentance starts at conversion and continues throughout the life of the believer.

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Some may also ask, “To what extent must the person exhibit visible change? What about the alcoholic? Or what about the person with habitual sins and addictions who wants to become a Christian?

Can they not become a Christian until they have successfully turned from those habits?”

Clearly they can.

Others ask, “What about the person with habits and addictions who still struggles with them after conversion?” How should we answer?

A decision to repent demands a change of behaviour only where the change is within the capacity of the individual to change. That which is beyond willpower is the sovereign work of God alone.

But the potential new Christian, if genuine, will say, “I sincerely want to change now and keep on changing for the rest of my life.”

The sincerity of the declaration is critical, and this is what we ought to look for. Complete victory over some habits and addictions often takes time, as God leads, heals, restores and empowers the new life.

Which behaviours are habitual or addictive, and which are not? This needs to be discerned, case by case.

Let me illustrate the importance of repentance at the point of conversion. I was preaching the gospel at a two-day rock concert attended by 13,000 people. At one point in the weekend, when no bands were playing onstage, I gathered a group and began to proclaim the gospel “open air” to about twenty people. I gave an invitation at the end, and Sue, a young woman in her mid-twenties, responded. She wanted to become a Christian. I took her through some excellent studies called Christianity Explained, in which the fifth lesson deals with repentance. Sue’s conscience soon alerted her to the fact that she was having sex with her boyfriend in a tent where the rock concert was happening. She asked me what she needed to do about this. She really loved him.

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hat would you have done?

I had three options: 1. Allow her to continue in known sin and adopt a “God will work it all out” approach. I could tell Sue she could become a Christian immediately if she really wanted to, even though she was going to keep sleeping with her boyfriend. I could tell her that as she walked with Jesus, post-conversion, He would resolve the twin issues of her non-Christian boyfriend and sex before marriage. i.e. she could keep her boyfriend, continue to have sex outside of marriage, and be a Christian. I could reason, “Better to have Sue connecting with Christians, coming to church and living in sin than not have her in the church at all.” You’ll notice this approach skips decisive repentance.

2. A llow her to continue in sin, but encourage a soft heart and a “Let Jesus show you” approach. I could say, “as you walk with Jesus and commit to reading His Word, going regularly to church and learning about Him, you will find your conscience is going to challenge you about this. If you stay soft-hearted and willing to learn, you will become more and more aware of what God’s view of right and wrong – and you will be faced with a choice. That won’t happen just with sex, but in all sorts of other areas too. God can help you make the right choices – but you have to be willing to change and to start the process of lining up your life with what the Bible teaches.”

3. The “delay the decision to become a Christian” approach. I could take time to talk through the two sticking points (the non-Christian boyfriend and pre-marital sex). I could advise Sue to wait for God to work in her heart (that is, wait for her to be willing to break her ties with the non-Christian boyfriend and come to the place where she would resolve not to have sex outside of marriage) before making a decision to become a Christian. I could try to involve her in church and encourage her to build relationships with Christians with the hope that these influences would give her strength and support through prayer and relationship to make the right decisions. In other words, I could insist on decisive repentance before telling Sue she was a Christian.

What would you have done?

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alance is always best….

To help you decide, I need to emphasise the need for balance. Accordingly, I want to quote an excellent word of caution from the Lausanne Covenant: “If we underemphasise repentance, we offer sinners what Bonhoeffer called ‘cheap grace,’ but if we overemphasise it we may be preaching the law rather than the gospel, a code rather than Christ, and salvation by works rather than by grace through faith.

Secondly, if we do nothing to identify what is meant by ‘sin,’ we are asking for repentance in a vacuum, which is an impossibility; whereas if we become too specific in naming sins, either we may try to do the Holy Spirit’s convicting work for Him or we may forget the complex cultural factors (for example the case of polygamy) which should make us tentative in our teaching rather than dogmatic.

Thirdly, it is possible to imply that conversion involves no radical change, while it is equally possible to expect too much of enquirers and new converts. Perfection is indeed the goal to be set before them, but we must not require maturity of understanding or behaviour from a newborn babe in Christ.”29

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hat Ezekiel would say to the Western Church today…

In closing, let me quote again one of the most sobering passages in the Old Testament.

“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from Me. When I say to the wicked, ‘Oh wicked man, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak out to dissuade him from his ways, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man to turn from his ways and he does not do so, he will die for his sin but you will have saved 29 Historic mission documents from the Lausanne Movement 1974 – 1989. p.67

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your own life” (Ezekiel 33:7-9).

If Ezekiel were to turn up now and analyse our problem of pseudo converts in the Western Church, I imagine he would say something like this: “You have misunderstood what God meant when He commanded you to evangelise. Your problem is you have stopped warning people. You’ve focussed on attracting them, gaining their respect, changing them, offering them a lifestyle improvement and a life coach called Jesus, and befriending them. None of these things is wrong. In fact, these things are a big part of my plan. Keep these things up. But if that’s all you do, you’ll end up with a lot of pseudo converts in your churches. Stop your obsession with “numbers” and competing with one another to see who can grow the biggest church.

This obsession is a stench in God’s nostrils. Instead, preach the narrow way with great love, and go for quality not quantity30, as Jesus demonstrated with His 12 disciples.”

By “warning” I mean two things: explaining to non-Christians the consequences of rejecting Jesus Christ and explaining to prospective Christians the cost of discipleship.

Converting non-Christians is, ultimately, God’s job. Warning them, by presenting the whole gospel, is ours.

Remember, Ezekiel was not charged with turning the wicked around. He was only called to warn them. Our first priority is to “warn the wicked.”

Yes, we want to win them and we proclaim the gospel with that intention for the glory of God but, as we have discovered in this Mini Book Series, ultimately “salvation belongs to the Lord” (Revelation 7:10).

In a sermon at Exeter Hall in 1860, Charles Spurgeon declared, “If sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our 30 There is nothing wrong with big churches, as long as they are not filled with Psuedo Christians.

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bodies. And if they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees, imploring them to stay. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there un-warned and un-prayed for.”31 Jesus was constantly warning His audiences.32 Paul was the same.

Christian leaders, we ought to join with Paul, Ezekiel, and Charles Spurgeon, to beg God’s mercy and go to work. Do everything you can to move people in your church on from “connection” to “conversion.” Teach about the difference. Help them to be fruitful by helping them to enter through the narrow way.

Proclaim the gospel regularly to non-Christians outside your church, and to the pseudo converts within it. Then, and only then, will the evangelisation of the world begin to flourish again.

Pastors and leaders - resist the pressure to rush someone through the gate of repentance. For example, because you are human, you might be tempted to do this: 1. Because you need the tithe of the new convert.

2. To increase the number of people in your church so you can look good and encourage yourself.

3. To encourage existing Christians in your church. Christians are greatly encouraged when they witness non-Christians coming to Christ. Leaders want to encourage the flock so they can be tempted to manipulate the crowd at the altar call in order to get a response, all so that they can say “Look how many peope were saved in our church today! Isn’t our church awesome!”

4. So you can report back to your denomination about how many people are being saved in your church.

31 Cited in Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort. The Way Of The Master. How To Share Your Faith Simply, Effectively, Biblically … The Way Jesus Did. Tyndale Books, 2003, p.177 32 (e.g. Matthew 7:24-27; Matthew 13:36 – 42; Matthew 13:47-50; Matthew 23; Matthew 25:31-46; Luke 16:19-31). Paul was the same (e.g. Romans 2:6-8; Galatians 5:19-21).

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But really, if psuedo converts are being created, the cause of world evangelism suffers greatly, for all the reasons I have detailed in this mini book.

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ummary

• Psuedo converts have a significant “dulling down” influence on the entire evangelistic zeal of a local church, hindering its ability to mobilise everyone for evangelism.

• They discourage evangelists because they show no interest in evangelising.

• As such they have a tendency to teach existing Christians their non-evangelistic life styles.

• Pseudo converts do most damage when they move into positions of leadership because then they can influence more people to not evangelise.

• The greatest single contributor to the creation of psuedo converts are poorly managed altar calls.

• People who respond to altar calls who really don’t know what they are doing are prime candidates for becoming psuedo converts.

• No one should be told they are a Christian until they have heard the whole gospel, had discussion about it with a mature seasoned Christian, and had time to process their impending “decision.”

• Conversion is more than a feeling (i.e. feeling a desire to become a Christian). It is also a head issue (i.e. knowing conceptually and theologically what we are doing).

• We must resist rushing people into “a decision.”

• Without genuine repentance, their can be no genuine faith.

• Repentance is godly sorrow for one’s sin, together with a resolution to turn from it.

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• If we underemphasise repentance, we offer cheap grace.

• If we overemphasise it we may be preaching the law rather than the gospel, a code rather than Christ, and salvation by works rather than by grace through faith.

• If we do nothing to identify what is meant by “sin” we are asking for repentance in a vacuum, which is an impossibility.

• If we become too specific in naming sins, we may try to do the Holy Spirit’s convicting work for Him. • It is possible to imply that conversion involves no radical change, while it is equally possible to expect too much of enquirers and new converts.

• Perfection is indeed the goal to be set before them, but we must not require maturity of understanding or behaviour from a newborn babe in Christ.

• CTION POINTS: You might ask “What can I do to help get the truth in this Mini Book to others?” Help other Christians become aware of the issues raised in this Mini Book, particularly leaders. Email it to everyone on your address book and encourage them to do the same. Send them a PDF file. You can obtain this by writing to julian@ esisite.com. Post it on social media. Go to the leaders of your church. Ask them to make changes to their mission statement so that evangelism becomes central. Ask them to bring evangelism back to centre stage in the life of your church.

Pray for them. Encourage them. Work with them. Dialogue.

We are near the end of our critique of the battle for souls. On the battlefield there are two areas left to inspect. No book on the topic of how the enemy hinders evangelism can skip what I am about to share in the next two Mini Books. Come with me. I have left the best until last…

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Real Life Story major secular radio station excited about www.biblein11.com web site During the first week of April, I was driving through Auckland listening to the radio station called News Talk ZB. The host at the time was Danny Watson. This station has over 400,000 people listening in any given 24 hour period, mostly nonChristians.

A man in his forties phoned in and said he had cancer and was dying and had only a few weeks to live.

He was asked by Danny how he was coping with this situation. The dying man said he had started to read the Bible to find out about “final realities”. Danny then asked him about his Bible reading, and what he had discovered.

He said that he started reading it but soon gave up because he couldn’t understand it.

I was reminded of the account of the Ethiopian Eunuch in Acts 8:30-31.

“Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah 35

the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked.

He replied “I couldn’t understand it, so I stopped reading it”.

“How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?”

So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. This is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants?

For his life was taken from the earth.” The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?”

Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.”

I don’t remember what else was said but the Holy Spirit spoke to me powerfully to phone in and tell the station about THE GOSPEL presentation we have developed.

Miraculously, I got through to Danny. I told him I had heard the call from the man dying of cancer, and his comments about the Bible. I then explained to Danny “that I was a Christian minister and we 36

had developed a piece of software which summarised the whole Bible in eleven minutes.”

“You’re kidding!”, he exclaimed. “No” I said “anyone can see it now if they want to. It’s able to be viewed on a web site”.

Danny asked me for the web address, and then asked again to make sure he had it right - www.biblein11.com. He made me repeat it slowly so all the listeners could hear.

Then he asked me what motivated me to develop this particular piece of software.

I said “because we believed that there were many people like the man dying of cancer out there in society who were interested in the Bible.

So we did it to help people get a handle on the world’s number one best selling book of all time.”

We rounded off the conversation. I was only five minutes from home and when I got to my office, I checked the web site. It had crashed! I phoned the web developer and he confirmed what I had thought. We had so many hits in a short space of time that the listeners on Newstalk ZB crashed the server!

Next, my cell phone went off.

It was a staff member at NewsTalk ZB. He said they were being inundated with calls from people who couldn’t get onto the web site I had just given. He was checking to see if the web address was right.

I then explained to him about the server crashing due to public interest.

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He then told me to write into the station and tell Danny Watson this.

“We are interested in anything that the public is interested in. Danny might give it a plug.”

All through the Bible there are windows of opportunity which God opens up. E.g. David and Goliath; Esther before the King etc.

As I drove to visit a group of ministers that week, I felt the Holy Spirit speak to me about “a window of opportunity” which has opened for us through this piece of software. Let’s use it for His glory.

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The Full List Of Books In ‘The Truth About Evangelism’ Mini Series Book One

Evangelism Lost! Exposing The True State Of Evangelism In Today’s Church

Book Two Seven Deadly Motives Exposing How The Enemy Is Shutting Down Evangelism.

Book Three

The Sorrowful Collapse Of The Great Commission- A Dangerous Redefining Of Evangelism

Book Four Evangelism Redefined? Six Subtle Yet Devastating Redefinitions Of Evangelism

Book Five Confusion Busters 7 Things You Should Know About The Gospel Message

Book Six

Six Ways To Move From Gospel Confusion To Gospel Clarity

Book Seven

The Evangelisation Of The World Is The Ulimate Purpose Of The Church. 7 Irrefutable Reasons It Is Time To Prioritise

Book Eight

A Gift, A Call, Or A Commission. Are All Christians Commanded To Evangelise

Book Nine

12 Keys To Fearless Evangelism In The 21St Century

Book Ten Take Them Down. 12 Road Blocks And How To Get Through Them

Book Eleven

The Key To Victory. Start Viewing Evangelism As An Event, Not A Process

Book Twelve

Confidence In The Gospel, Come Back! Four Essential Steps To Reclaiming Lost Ground!

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Book Thirteen Prepare To Be Amazed! What Jesus Really Taught About Evangelism!

Book Fourteen

What Leaders Must Do To Cause A Resurgence In World Evangelism

Book Fifteen

A Plan Of Action To Cause A Resurgence In World Evangelism

Book Sixteen

Church Leaders! This Is Your Time To Step Up! (Part 1)

Book Seventeen

Church Leaders! This Is Your Time To Step Up! (Part 2)

Book Eighteen

Church Leaders! This Is Your Time To Step Up! (Part 3)

Book Nineteen

Church Leaders! This Is Your Time To Step Up! (Part 4)

Book Twenty Church Leaders! This Is Your Time To Step Up! (Part 5)

Book Twenty One

Climb On Board! 4 Reasons Why Doing Evangelism Will Help Create A Better World!

Book Twenty Two

Devastation! How Pseudo-Conversions Hinder Evangelism And What You Can Do To Stop The Rot!

Book Twenty Three

“Friendship evangelism.” What’s good about it, and what’s heretical?

Book Twenty Four

Unholy Grief! Five Ways Evangelists With The Gift Can Grieve The Holy Spirit

Book Twenty Five

The Highest Motive For Doing Evangelism? You’ll Be Amazed What The Bible Teaches!

Conclusion

Book Twenty Six Appendix One : If We Fail To Evangelise, We Fail. Period. By Dr K.P. Yohannan

Appendix Two : The Pastor Evangelist. By Dr. Roger S. Greenway

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Appendix Three : True Gospel Must Be Heard, By Kevyn Harris

Appendix Four : This We Believe Signatories

Appendix Five : Device 84. “I don’t like being told to do evangelism!”

Book Twenty Seven The Evangelism Fitness Test

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